Above-cited application Ser. No. 11/515,618 discloses a database-based content management system for a network system that provides a straightforward process for publishing content and advertisements from advertisers and affiliates associated with the network system to a website. The disclosed content management system implements a workflow-based approach that allows different types of network content contributors and other sources to push and feed data to the different sections of the website properties. More specifically, it provides a centralized data repository and a set of content contributor web-based interfaces so that non-technical resources can jointly and concurrently work on the publishing of the sites. In this way, editors can log into the system and create database objects that hold the initial metadata and mapping for the stories to be published, merchandisers can manage and import collections of products and their availability information from a very large number of records, made available to the network system via automated data feeds that are updated daily, designers can prepare a custom layout for each page of a custom collection and upload the different graphical assets that will be required for building the layout, and production specialists can gather all of the assets, lay them out and publish the website.
Those skilled in the art appreciate that, before a determination can be made regarding how to increase the return-on-investment (ROI) from on-line advertising, the objectives for the on-line advertising campaign must be determined. This is necessary because on-line advertising often serves multiple purposes. For example, on-line ads can help to increase brand awareness, brand perception and user engagement with the ad (e.g., clicks), as well as ultimately lead to higher sales of the products and services being advertised.
While traditional media (e.g., magazines and TV) measure reach, awareness and product sales as the primary metrics for ad campaign effectiveness, on-line advertising has used ad impressions delivered, clicks and conversions as its primary metrics. However, recent research reports indicate that only sixty percent of on-line end users actually see the ads above the fold and there is no correlation between display ad clicks and brand metrics. Furthermore, only one percent of on-line end users click on ads and there is no connection between measured attitude towards a brand and the number of times an ad for that brand was clicked.
As more advertisers shift their ad campaigns to on-line digital media, it is clear that brand advertising is not possible with small text ads that typically appear next to search results. Also, the majority of on-line advertising has focused on performance-based campaigns with “click” as the primary measurement metric. Graphical ads have now moved beyond static banner ads to include flash animation, video and sound, thus making it more compelling to present brand ads in more attractive and engaging formats. With Web advertising expected to surpass $60 billion by 2013, and with display and video ads to account for more than a third of that amount, there is increasing demand for more effective systems and methods for delivering on-line brand advertising.